Has the Cornish Tea Company changed the art of tea?

Introducing the capsule tea that's Nespresso machine compatible and ready in an instant. Creators The Cornish Tea Company gave the Good Housekeeping Institute the chance to give it a try...

Do you live in a household of coffee-drinking Nespresso lovers but find yourself hankering for a brew? The Cornish Tea Company might have the answer with its Captain's Choice Nespresso compatible tea pods. If you're not convinced by this coffee machine-friendly tea, we've tried and tasted it for you (someone had to) and this is what we think.

Just use the pods the same as you would a coffee pod and the tea comes through the machine at drinking temperature so it's ready to start sipping straight away. Despite the lower temperature, the tea is still strong and well-bodied - and it's quicker than waiting for your pot of tea to brew the recommended three to five minutes. There's also no risk of hot tea leaves covering your kitchen counter and you don't have to dispose of any tea bags - the pod machine will add the pod to its internal bin.

On the downside, the Dualit 3-in-1 Nespresso machine we used is limited by its coffee cup size and if you want a large mug of tea you might need to run water through the machine twice. The pods are only suitable for the Nespresso compatible machines and it only comes in black tea flavour, so if you like herbal or flavoured tea this isn't for you.

Our verdict...
It's pleasantly surprising that this pod tea is strong and flavoursome, especiallly as no brewing is required. The tea is almost instantly ready and doesn't taste of coffee despite being run through a coffee machine. As mentioned, the main drawback is due to the machine's limitations, only making smaller coffee-sized cups of tea. But if you have a Nespresso compatible machine this is a great addition to your collection of pods, especially if you like strong tea.

If you don't have a compatible machine or drink a wide variety of teas this probably isn't the product for you, but there are always tea bags...